41 Colorado Businesses and Investors Urge Gov. Hickenlooper’s Timely Implementation of EPA’s Clean Power Plan

BOSTON, July 31, 2015 /3BL Media/ - Today, 41 businesses and investors with a significant presence in Colorado issued a letter to Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper offering strong support for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan for existing power plants, and encouraging the state’s “timely finalization” of its implementation plan. The letter was coordinated by the nonprofit sustainability advocacy organization, Ceres.

“Our support is firmly grounded in economic reality,” states the letter. “Clean energy solutions are cost effective and innovative ways to drive investment and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Increasingly, businesses rely on renewable energy and energy efficiency solutions to cut costs and improve corporate performance.”

The EPA Clean Power Plan is the nation’s first comprehensive effort to reduce carbon pollution from existing electric power plants—the single largest source of global warming pollution in the U.S. The plan sets unique emissions reduction targets for each state to achieve by 2030 and provides the states flexible approaches to meeting the reductions in their implementation plans, such as through deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency.

"At Aspen Skiing Company, we are acutely aware of the threat that fossil fuel-induced climate change poses both to our industry, as well as to the planet more broadly," said Auden Schendler, Vice President of Sustainability at Aspen Skiing Company. "That's why we advocate so strongly for policies like the EPA Clean Power Plan. On our own, we've moved rapidly to slash our carbon footprint, including through increased investment in renewable power and energy efficiency projects. These measures are good both for the environment and also for our business, but they are not enough. We appreciate Colorado's willingness to proactively implement the EPA's Clean Power Plan goals for our state, and for the ski industry that draws so much investment and tourism here."

The letter follows a trend in which a growing number of businesses are increasingly relying on renewable energy and energy efficiency solutions to cut their costs and boost their competitiveness. A 2014 study co-authored by Ceres, Calvert Investments and the World Wildlife Fund found that 60 percent of Fortune 100 companies have set their own clean energy targets and have saved more than $1 billion a year in the process.

“Colorado's clean energy policy, such as the Renewable Energy Standard, has enabled New Belgium to take a leadership role in energy management in the energy-intensive brewing industry,” said Jenn Vervier, Director of Strategy and Sustainability at New Belgium Brewing. “The Clean Power Plan presents an opportunity for the state to continue that leadership, and we support Gov. Hickenlooper’s efforts in working to develop a robust state implementation plan.”

Colorado already has some of the most robust renewable energy and energy efficiency programs in the country, with 17 percent of the state's energy coming from renewable sources in 2013, thanks in large part to a strong Renewable Energy Standard for investor-owned-utilities of 30 percent clean energy by 2020. In addition, Colorado has enormous solar and wind power potential, putting the state in a strong position to meet and exceed the Clean Power Plan’s targets. Xcel Energy, Colorado’s largest utility, has been increasing investment in renewable energy and energy efficiency, and recent research shows that carbon dioxide emissions from electric power plants in Colorado decreased by about 10 percent from 2008 to 2013.

"At First Affirmative Financial Network, we strongly believe that investing in clean energy can deliver better investment performance for our clients while mitigating systemic risk," said Steven J. Schueth, President, First Affirmative Financial Network. "We hope that our home state of Colorado, a state with enormous wind and solar power potential, will work aggressively and quickly to implement the EPA's Clean Power Plan goals."

The businesses listed below emphasize that there is no tradeoff between continued economic growth and cutting carbon pollution, and strongly encourage Governor Hickenlooper to ensure Colorado's timely finalization and implementation of the state's carbon pollution reduction plans.

“As you develop your implementation plan we hope you will include the building blocks of renewable energy and energy efficiency, which will allow you to mitigate the risks of climate change and the volatility of fossil fuel prices,” they state.

Signatories to the letter include: American Outdoor Products, Inc.; Asean Corporation (Stalkmarket brands); Aspen Brewing Company; Aspen Skiing Company; Calvert Investments; Clean Power Finance; Colorado Sustainable Financial Planning; Earth and Sky Architecture; EarthWiseOptions.com; Eco-Products; EILEEN FISHER, Inc.; Electric Vehicle Institute; Energy Strategy Environment; First Affirmative Financial Network; GOLO Enterprise; Green CO2 Systems; iResortApp; Juhl Energy; KKI; Namaste Solar; Natural Investments; New Belgium Brewing Company; Odell Brewing; Olavie; Papillion Resorts, LLC; Presbyterian Church (U.S.A); San Juan Coffee Company, Inc.; Schneider Electric; SmartWool; Staples, Inc.; Suite Sleep, Inc.; Sungevity; Sunsense Solar; Taiga Company; The North Face; Thornton Tomasetti; Unitarian Universalist Association; Venner Consulting, Inc.; VF Corporation; Wespath Investment Management; and YR&G.

To download the full text of the letter, please click here.

Bold indicates companies with >$100M in annual revenue and investors with >$2B in assets under management.

About Ceres
Ceres is a nonprofit organization mobilizing business and investor leadership on climate change, water scarcity and other sustainability challenges. Ceres directs the Investor Network on Climate Risk (INCR), a network of institutional investors with collective assets totaling more than $13 trillion. Ceres also directs Business for Innovative Climate & Energy Policy (BICEP), an advocacy coalition of dozens of companies committed to working with policymakers to pass meaningful energy and climate legislation. For more information, visit www.ceres.org or follow on Twitter @CeresNews

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